Rates at weekly US Treasury auction rise to highest levels since late December

Interest rates on short-term Treasury bills rose in Monday's auction to their highest levels since late December.

The Treasury Department auctioned $26 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 0.040 percent, up from 0.015 percent last week. Another $26 billion in six-month bills was auctioned at a discount rate of 0.145 percent, up from 0.095 percent last week.

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The three-month rate was the highest since three-month bills averaged 0.055 percent on Dec. 22. The six-month rate was the highest since those bills averaged 0.155 percent, also on Dec. 22.

The discount rates reflect that the bills sell for less than face value. For a $10,000 bill, the three-month price was $9,998.99, while a six-month bill sold for $9,992.67. That would equal an annualized rate of 0.041 percent for the three-month bills and 0.148 percent for the six-month bills.

Separately, the Federal Reserve said Monday that the average yield for one-year Treasury bills, a popular index for making changes in adjustable rate mortgages, was 0.25 percent last week, the same as the previous week.